On February 20, Vitebsk /Diana Kurilo - BELTA/. Judge specialization has been introduced in the courts of the Vitebsk region, as reported to BELTA correspondent by the Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Court, Nikolay Khamichenok. Judge specialization is being introduced in accordance with the Address of the President of Belarus on the development prospects of the general court system. The courts of Vitebsk, Polotsk, Novopolotsk, and Orsha have become pioneers. These courts have boards for civil and criminal cases; however, in addition to the internal specialization of the boards, judges also have narrow specializations, for example, in cases against the interests of service, in cases of embezzlement, and in juvenile cases. According to Nikolay Khamichenok, along with reducing the workload on judges, the introduction of their specialization will improve the quality of judicial proceedings. Last year, the courts of the Vitebsk region received 6.7 thousand criminal cases, over 43 thousand civil cases, and more than 73 thousand administrative offense cases for consideration. Compared to 2010, the number of criminal and civil cases decreased by 18.5% and 8%, respectively, while administrative cases increased by 10%. The actual workload for judges in considering cases and materials was 91.9. -0-

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